Putting the community in co-working spaces

Once a fad, co-working spaces are now a fixture of Metro Detroit's entrepreneurial community. Credit the success of early adopters like TechTown, the Green Garage in Midtown Detroit and Bamboo Detroit with fueling the city's co-work fever. The communal workspaces, shared amenities and wallet-friendly pricing are making many small companies, entrepreneurs and remote workers say "no thanks" to corner office aspirations.

With so many options available in Metro Detroit, co-working spaces now tout curated community benefits as their most enticing feature. Here's a glimpse into Metro Detroit's ever-expanding co-working universe.

FOR STARTUPS: Launching your new company? WeWork and Bamboo Detroit are hubs for the city's upstart community of tech entrepreneurs. Bamboo Detroit residents have access to startup-themed happy hours, training and feedback sessions. WeWork hosts the Creator Awards, a nationwide contest that rewards worthy startups at all stages with venture funding. (WeWork isn't solely for startups; several larger suburban, national and global companies, including Pinterest and the Discovery Channel, also have WeWork offices in Detroit.) And Junction440, located on TechTown's first floor, offers access to TechTown's entrepreneurs-in-residence and visiting experts, as well as regular panels, workshops and networking events. All of these spaces are growing: Bamboo Detroit moved into a new space in the Madison building this year, WeWork recently opened a second location in Campus Martius and Junction440 is planning to expand to additional floors in the TechTown building.

More on modern workspace design

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Detroit design grows up: Designers used to reflect Detroit literally in their work, decking the halls with hubcaps and skyline photography. But tastes are evolving in a city that no longer feels the need to jump up and down for attention.

Rethinking the open office: Designers focus on creating flexible work experiences that offer workers a range of spaces and environments and fit a company's culture.

FOR THE LADIES: Boasting salmon pink walls and a chandelier, new Detroit co-working space Femology celebrates women entrepreneurs. The downtown location offers its women customers access to a glam modern business lounge, along with discounts on curated programming and complimentary coffee, tea and snacks.

FOR PARENTS: This year has seen a bumper crop of co-working spaces with daycare options included — great news for moms and dads on the go. At Ferndale's Honey, founder Brooke Miller has brought together a community of more than 150 moms and moms-to-be who take advantage of the Honey clubhouse, daycare and beauty bar or relax with acupuncture, yoga and themed classes. The new Detroit Parent Collective, located near Marygrove College and supported by the Frank Family, Metro Solutions Inc. and The Skillman Foundation, offers co-working and child education for busy parents. In addition to drop-in daycare, the co-op preschool boasts Montessori-like curriculum led by a master teacher.

FOR THE BUILDERS: SpaceLab Detroit is meeting the needs of the built-environment community — creating a hub and a respite for architects, builders, designers and more. In addition to the expected office amenities, SpaceLab offers members access to a materials library and opportunities to improve SpaceLab's own business operations, design and management.

FOR COLLABORATORS: Straddling the border of Detroit and Grosse Pointe Park, Mash Detroit calls itself a community bridge helping different kinds of people meet and learn from each other. After launching a successful prototype of a co-working space for artists, nonprofits and entrepreneurs in the Jefferson-Chalmers District, the next iteration of Mash is reportedly coming soon.

FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS: Byte & Mortar's motto? It's Your Office. The Troy-based co-working spaces include top-of-the-line reception and conference rooms. But if you're the type of worker who likes to plug in from the beach, Byte & Mortar offers above-and-beyond services like a local telephone number, voicemail and call forwarding and answering from professional receptionists.

FOR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESSES: The Green Garage uses about a tenth of the energy of a traditional office building thanks to its environmentally friendly design. It has also fostered a sustainability-minded coworking community since 2011, offering weekly lunches for triple-bottom-line business leaders, community brown bag lunches, office yoga and neighborhood walks.